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Heksie wrote:DO you only use those lenses on the bugs? Or are they left on?Because all your sightings are great and the kiekies you took of them are amazing Lions in the morning sun lions in the road hyenas, figting and their close ups cicadas Dicks' cousin baba giraffe that went for a hair fluff up What a great day in the park

Hi Heksie, thanks again for the comments.

The extension tubes are only for closeups, when they are on the camera (with my 55-200mm lens) I can only focus on things that are less than half a metre away.

I use two camera bodies, my D5100 has my Bigma permamently attached, the D5000 usually has the 55-200 but I also use the 18-55 and the extension tubes on this camera.

15-17 November 2013, day visitor at Croc Bridge gate.18 November 2013, Lower Sabie

Up at the usual oh-dark-thirty and out of the gates just after they opened. Our intention was to head down to the south end of the Gomondwane loop, head up to the S137, across to the S28 and down to breakfast at Croc Bridge.

We had to make a slight change to our plans when, about 5kms down the main road we came upon a traffic jam that was caused by these. The huge game drive truck had parked in the middle of the road making it difficult for anyone else to see anything but we did manage to see through a small gap and by moving back and forth were able to see some of what was going on.

Nobody was moving and it looked like the lions were staying put as well so we turned around and headed back towards Lower Sabie taking the S82 Mativuhlungu Loop to get around the traffic jam. We do not like sitting around watching Lions lying about along with uncle Tom Cobley and all.

Back on the H4, a small clan of Hyaenas loped past and disappeared into the bush.

and a little further, a lone Lioness on the side of the road.

A dung beetle was rolling a ball across the road and having problems staying upright.

Near Duke waterhole two Zebras were doing some mutual grooming

and I couldn't resist taking this portrait in wonderful light.

We had previously arranged to meet Aat the Tusker Man and his SO Elly for breakfast at Crocodile Bridge. I was relieved to find that Elly didn't have large flappy ears and a trunk!!!!

After a fantastic CB breakfast - the best in the park - and a great chat with A&E which ranged from Tuskers (Naturally) to the downfall of Lance Armstrong, we finally bid them farewell and headed into Komatipoort for some much needed (and much less expensive) provisions.

The afternoon drive took us up to Nkuhlu past Sunset Dam where a Hippo was showing his gape.

Nkuhlu had closed by the time we got there but there were several Nile Monitors in evidence, basking in the afternoon sun. This was the biggest of them.

On the way back there was a traffic jam on the Lubyelubye bridge, caused by the famous Lubyelubye Leopard.

Sunset Dam was looking wonderful in the late afternoon light.

A Grey Heron on a nearby tree presented we with this photo opportunity.

A small herd of Waterbuck came over the embankment between the road and the camp.

and we had a stunning sunset across the Sabie river.

Last edited by BluTuna on Wed Nov 28, 2012 10:32 am, edited 1 time in total.

15-17 November 2013, day visitor at Croc Bridge gate.18 November 2013, Lower Sabie

kallis1786 wrote:Lions are amazing if you spend time with them. I do agree there are times when Lions just sleep around, but when they are active, it makes a great sighting.

Now coming to todays episode, another fab episode with more Lions Some superb pics you got there. A Hyena and WOW a HIPPO YAWN , a Hippo Yawn is still in my wishlist.

Great episode. Loved it.

Don't get me wrong - I'll sit and watch Lions if they are doing something and if there aren't too many other cars (like the mating pair we watched a couple of days before this). What I don't get is people sitting for hours watching Lions sleep.

Hippo yawns are easy! Just find some hippos and be patient, the alpha bull will show off his teeth eventually. If you're really luck, you might get to see a fight, that's really worth watching!!!

Up early again and off to Afsaal via the Biyamiti Wier; one of our first sightings is of these two chaps giving us the bum view.

followed shortly after by a lone Hyaena galloping down the road.

The weather was mostly cloudy and the Berg-en-Dal area looked sombre from the S25.

At one of the many river crossings was a Little Egret and a Reed Cormorant

Biyamiti Wier is a great place for getting close to birds

Common Sandpiper

Hammerkop

Black Crake pretending to be Naomi Campbell

Threebanded Plover - or is it a Lapwing these days?

and an eye level view of an Impala.

At Afsaal, a hairy caterpillar

and on the way back to Lower Sabie (via the N4 as it was getting late and I needed my midday snooze), a Flapnecked Chameleon.

On the H4 from Crocodile Bridge, we stopped next to a minibus to see what they were looking at - "you just missed a Leopard in that dead tree" So we hung around and watched for a while which was a good thing as we would have missed this sighting otherwise.

About 100 metres further up the road - Mom had just got up and moved into the bush.

And here's Super-Mom, raising FIVE cubs to this age us an awesome achievement!

Our afternoon drive took us down a road we haven't driven before (unless it was a very long time ago), the S122 with a stop at Mlondozi Dam.

On the LS bridge, a Giant Kingfisher

and after seeing a lot of nothing on the S122, finally an Ele who must be on Aat's web site but I can't find him.

along the way were some male Ostriches who were trying to impress a female

and when we got to the S29 junction and drove towards Mlondozi, there were suddenly lots of Eles striding at high speed through the bush. This was one of the smaller groups.

Aside from a very bloated, upside-down, dead hippo, the dam had nothing to offer but from the bridge at LS, a not-dead hippo was standing in the rapids.

15-17 November 2013, day visitor at Croc Bridge gate.18 November 2013, Lower Sabie

Another Grey Heron arriving with food. It's amazing how the chicks recognise their own parents from a great distance and only that bird's chicks start making a noise!

A crocodile was cruising around and not even creating a ripple on the water.

A last couple of pictures....

and it's time to pick up the SO and head towards the gate with a stop for coffee at Afsaal.

Where we saw a Red Headed Weaver

and some more crimson Dragonflies

I think this one has just hatched.

Finally, we can't delay our departure any more so We head towards Malelane.

And to see us off, some brand new Impies.

THE END

That was the Kruger through my eyes and my camera lens.

Again I have tried to give a slightly different view of the park than the usual mammals and birds reports - which I read with great enjoyment even if I don't comment very often.

I think the macro photography made quite a difference to this report and I'm really pleased with the positive feedback!

Yet another trip done and dusted - I seem to spend lots of time anticipating the trip and then suddenly it's all over bar the photos!

I'm still going back through all of the pictures I took (about 6,500 of them) to select out some of the ones I missed out of this TT. I'll post them as additions and I'll also post a countdown of my personal favourites for the trip. So keep the comments coming (even if it's just a thumbs-up) so I can avoid getting nasty comments from the mods about posting too many pictures

A big THANK YOU to everybody for taking the time to read this report and a special thank you to those of you who took the time to comment.

15-17 November 2013, day visitor at Croc Bridge gate.18 November 2013, Lower Sabie

And for Hilda, who seems to like Dragonflies, here are some pics I got at home. These were far more difficult to get than birds in flight as they rarely stay still for long enough to focus and zoom in.

15-17 November 2013, day visitor at Croc Bridge gate.18 November 2013, Lower Sabie

Hi BTYes i am also one of those readers who don't often comment. Thanks for a most interesting trip report and yes the macro photography brought a new and interesting dimension to the report

The crimson Dragonflies in your last day report look very much like Kirby's Dropwing which are found more often on a stone than on a leaf.Those 2 fantastic photos of a flying dragonfly (i am very about those photos) looks like a female but I cannot Id the actual species.

Looking forward to your next TR and thanks again for sharing your experiences with us

MY get up and go has just got up and gone
Be Positive and Keep Smiling
Terry